Can I Keep Him?
by Don't Mess With Aria
Summary: AU where turians are kept as pets and generally believed to be non-sapient. This is from the KINK meme it does contain KINK. Warnings: kink, deviance, mature content. **This is the short and gritty version; the happy adventure story will be on my other profile**
1. Feral

This has gone through a couple different version. This, now, is the original, short version, somewhat revised. The version that became _Shepard's Turian Adventure,_ more or less, is on my Palaven Blues profile under the name _Insurgence_ (link is on this profile).

* * *

Chapter One

Feral

Jane Shepard shifted her grocery bags, trying to get a better grip before the straps cut through her hands.

"Want me to carry one?" her friend Tali asked.

Jane snorted, looking through the thick, tinted glass at the face she could barely see. "I don't think so. Last time we went shopping together, you managed to slip one of your dextro protein bars in my bags. I puked for approximately a week, you know."

"Keelah, maybe you should look at the labels, instead of scarfing down anything which does not run away from you first." She pushed Shepard's shoulder lightly, and Jane grinned, pushing back.

"You should quit trying to poison all your friends. I know you think you're special, being the only sapient dextro race but – what was that?"

Jane froze, spooked. She glanced around, but all she could see was the usual Citadel crowd: liberal amounts of batarian and asari and salarian, a fair amount of humans and quarians, and just a sprinkle of others.

"What was what?" Tali asked. "Oh, that's a good restaurant."

Jane barely glanced at the restaurant, instead trying to peer into the darkened alley that ran beside it. She set her bags down carefully and stepped forward, omni-blade arm held out stiffly. The years of self-defense her father had given her were augmented by her job as a bouncer. Whatever it was, she was certain she could handle it.

As she took her second step into the alley, she heard a scuffling noise. Whatever it was knew that she was here, now.

"Tali, light," Jane said quietly. The alley flooded with light, and Jane reacted at first without thinking, raising her omni-blade and crouching slightly, ready. Then she saw it was only a stray turian that had been rummaging through the dextro restaurant's trash, frozen now because of the light.

Jane lowered her arm, laughing at herself. "Jeez, big guy, you gave me a scare."

"Ew, Jane, leave it."

"Aw, but he looks hungry. Are you hungry, buddy? Are you?" The turian watched her warily, eyes flicking between her and her friend. "What have you got against turians, anyway?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe the giant claws that would rip my suit and leave me fighting for my life? Or maybe because they're dirty. Let's go, Shepard." Tali sighed, already knowing that this wasn't going to turn out well.

"In a minute," Shep muttered. Without breaking eye contact, she stepped backwards toward Tali, reaching into the quarian's groceries.

"Hey, stop it! Those are expensive!"

"He's hungry, Tali. I'll pay you back, don't worry." She slowly unwrapped the food she'd gotten from Tali. She knew turians were dextro, like the quarians, and he was clearly interested once she'd opened the food.

"You want this, buddy? Come on, you're hungry, come on, boy." Her voice had gone high and sing-songy, and Tali snorted light laughter behind her. Shep ignored her and watched as the big turian crept forward. She was dismayed to see how skinny he was.

"Look, Tali, no one's been feeding him for a long time."

"It's a stray, a feral. Leave it alone. You know they say you can't trust them unless they're properly trained by a good owner."

"He's not gonna hurt me, I can tell. Right, big guy? Come on, that's it." The turian crept closer until he could snag the food, some kind of meat wrap, in his talons. Then he backed away a few paces and crouched, attacking the little wrap.

"Look how hungry, Tali!"

"Look how _toothy,_ Shepard," Tali returned.

Jane eyed the teeth, admitting to herself that Tali was right about those. Not that she'd ever tell Tali that. She really didn't need something that toothy loose in the house. But the way he was looking at her … almost as if he was begging for her help.

Once he'd finished with the wrap, he started sidling forward again, blue eyes locked on her grey ones, sniffing the air delicately to see if there would be more food forthcoming.

"Aw, come on, buddy, you're friendly, aren't you?" Jane patted her leg, encouraging the animal to come closer.

The turian kept his ice blue eyes on her, watching for any sign that she would start yelling, probably. He looked like he'd been abused.

"He was definitely someone's pet, though, Tali. Look at him."

The turian had reached Jane now and started nuzzling her hand, looking back up at her face in between each head-bump to confirm her continuing good mood. She couldn't just leave him out on the street, could she? She looked to her friend, eyes wide and lip pooched out.

"Take it to a shelter," Tali advised.

Jane sighed. Tali was probably right … Jane knew from experience she couldn't even keep fish alive. It would be a disservice to the animal to take it home if she couldn't take care of it. She unbuckled her belt, and the turian cringed back.

"No, no, buddy, I'm not gonna hit you. I just need a leash to safely walk you. It's okay. Come on, come smell it. It's not dangerous." She held the belt out, waiting while he smelled it to assure himself it was not a threat. Once he seemed comfortable, she slipped it around his neck. He stiffened, but didn't fight it. Clearly, he had been walked on-leash before.

Tali snorted. "He is going to pull," she predicted. "The belt will choke, and you are going to end up mauled. When you wake up in the hospital, I am going to be laughing at you, still."

"Don't be so melodramatic. He knows how to walk on a leash. Don't you, boy?" She gave a light tug and the turian moved, sticking close to her side, which was all the distance the jury-rigged "leash" would allow.

Jane led him out of the alley, making soothing noises the whole time. Tali was busy on her omni-tool, muttering to herself about unprovoked animal attacks.

"Whatcha doin', Tali?"

"Finding a shelter for that monster. You cannot keep it, it is bigger than you are."

The turian flicked his mandibles at that, and Jane reassured him. "Oh, no you're not a monster. Oh, no you're not! Oh, no you're not!" She let her hand drop to his crest, nearly at her own head height even though he was still crouched. She started scratching him under the crest and he made a light keening sound.

"You have got to be kidding me," Tali said. "That thing is still intact. Do you have any idea how much noise an intact turian can make? You are definitely not keeping it. Let's go." Tali grabbed her grocery bags again and started walking briskly away. "We are getting it to a shelter now."

Jane sighed and reached for her own groceries, but the turian grabbed them first, flinching away from her as if she might hit him for it. Her heart broke as she watched him cringing away from her.

"Hey, don't be scared, buddy. If you want to carry for me, I won't complain. Come on, now." She gave another little tug to the leash and he started to walk beside her. He must have been a house-pet, he was just too well trained. "What should I call you?" she wondered out loud.

"Do _not_ name that thing!" Tali yelled from up ahead.

#

"What do you mean, you are full?" Tali demanded.

Jane could barely hear her, but the way she was waving her arms around at the clerk who manned the shelter's front desk was clear enough. Jane had hung back with the turian, since he seemed scared to go in. She ran a hand along his shoulder as he trembled.

"It's okay, big guy. Shhh, it's okay."

Tali stormed out a moment later. Jane could tell she was glaring even through the mask.

"They are full," Tali said.

Jane waited. She knew she didn't need her friend's permission to keep an animal. They didn't even live together, not since Tali had married that Kal'Reegar guy. But still, she waited.

"If you are keeping it, you need to buy food for it, at least," Tali said, giving up.

"Do you hear that, big guy? You're coming home with me, yes, you are, yes, you are!" Jane grinned at her new turian, and he seemed to grin right back, mandibles wide. If he was a dog, he'd be wagging.

"Do you have to do that voice _every_ time you talk to it?" Tali punched a few numbers into her omni-tool. "Kal, hi. Look, I might be a little late. No, it's just – I know, but –"

"Tali, I can manage. You go home." Jane didn't want to get Tali in trouble and she could handle this on her own.

"Never mind, Kal, I'm on my way. I'll see you soon, love." Tali sighed as she hung up. "You be careful with that thing. Do not have your hands in the bowl when you feed it, okay? And do not let it sleep on the bed or it will think it's in charge." Tali pointed a stern finger at Jane before picking up her groceries and heading home, walking a little more quickly than normal.

Jane watched her go, momentarily worried about the two of them. Then her turian nudged his head into her arm and she forgot about them.

"Hold on a second," she told him, handing him the end of his leash. She played around with her omni-tool until she found a pet store that was willing to deliver. "Bed, food … ooh, a turian naming book … jeez, you're expensive." She laughed when the turian seemed to quail in response to that. "No, don't feel bad, sillypants."

It was so weird how he seemed to understand everything she said. And the hands, turians must be smart as pyjaks. Her turian waited patiently while she ordered everything she would need for him from the pet store.

"Okay, that should be it. Come on, buddy. Let's get home. They'll be there in fifteen minutes, we have to beat them. Come on." She patted her thigh and broke into a jog. The turian matched her pace easily, even carrying her groceries and his own leash. As she ran, she noticed just how many other people were out walking their own turians. She caught a few looks, herself; hers was the only turian that was currently off-leash. Shep snorted. They really should learn to train their animals. She'd only just gotten a turian, and she'd already trained him to behave off-leash.

#

Jane was panting lightly by the time she got to her apartment door. Her turian was not panting at all; his long stride had allowed him to keep up effortlessly, even while carrying everything. Jane laughed at herself a bit as she unlocked the door and let them in.

The turian stepped inside cautiously, eyes wide as he tried to take in the entire apartment. She grabbed the groceries from him and headed for the kitchen, thinking she would let him just get used to the place for a bit. Instead, he followed her, nearly stepping on her heels as he made sure she couldn't leave him behind.

"I'm just going to the kitchen, big guy, calm down." She moved him back a little, trying to leave enough room for her to maneuver in the kitchen. He didn't seem to like that, but stayed put, fidgeting with the end of his improvised leash.

"Oh, hey, buddy, you don't have to wear that, still." She paused in putting things away, leaving the fridge open as she took the belt collar off him. She considered pulling it back through her belt loops, and instead decided to throw it into the living room. The turian flinched when she raised her arm.

"Hey, it's okay," she soothed. "Not gonna hit you, big guy." She finished shoving the rest of the groceries into the fridge without taking them out of the bags first; most of them were probably fridge stuff, she reasoned. "Let's go sit –" Shepard was interrupted by the chime of the door, and her turian stiffened, growling as he tried to place the noise.

"Easy, big guy, it's just –" Her turian brushed by her, nearly knocking her over in his mad dash to get to the door and scare off the apparent intruder.

"Hey!" She followed him and pulled him back from the door slightly. "Knock that off, mister! No, sir," she told him, waving one finger at him. He stopped growling immediately and stepped back from the door so Jane could open it.

"Hello," she said to the salarian who was waiting there, holding a large bag with several more at his feet.

"Delivery for Shepard?" he asked. "Turian bed, food, books, etc.?"

"Yes, that's me."

"Sign here," he told her, holding out his omni-tool for her electronic signature. Once she'd signed, he started shuttling all her merchandise through the doorway.

"New owner?" he asked, looking around.

"Uh … yeah." Jane's eyes narrowed slightly, sensing he was going somewhere with this.

"Did you register him?" the salarian asked.

"Register?"

He sighed, shaking his head. "Must be registered. Also, legally required to fix voices. Cannot own unaltered animal on Citadel. Very illegal. Very expensive if found out." The salarian coughed slightly after his quick speech.

_Is this a shake-down?_ "Well, he is fixed. Quiet as a –" Her turian chose that moment to start growling again, as the salarian deliveryman had just stepped a little too close to her.

"I see. Should also get him … ah, the other kind of fixed," he said, pointing to the turian's crotch. "Males tend to get protective. Can be dangerous. Not legally required, however …." The salarian trailed off, waiting.

"How much to get him registered?" Jane asked, glowering.

The salarian ignored her question, continuing with his pitch. "Can take care of through the store, bring license tag tomorrow. Bit of problem, with voice box intact, however."

"How much?"

"Two hundred."

Jane gaped. "You're a fucking criminal, you know that?"

"Not the one with illegal animal in apartment," the salarian pointed out, sniffing lightly.

"Fine," she grumbled, punching buttons on her omni-tool. "There you go."

"Pleasure doing business with you. Send his name over and I can bring a name tag for him tomorrow, as well."

Shepard shut the door on him before he could demand any more credits. Her turian was already going through the bags lightly. He wasn't taking anything out completely, just looking through curiously to see what she'd gotten.

"Well, are you hungry?" she asked him. He stopped sniffing around the folded-up bed she'd bought and stared at her, mandibles thrumming. Yes, it was a safe bet that was hungry.

#

A few minutes later, her turian was settled on the floor with a bowl of … well, not quite kibble. The pieces of whatever-it-was were big enough for him to pick up, kinda like the giant shredded wheat blocks. Except, nothing with those fucking teeth was going to be eating wheat. Jane sat on the couch, flipping through the turian raising guide. She guessed he must be full grown, as he towered over her. Jeez, she hoped he was full grown. Something else in the book caught her eye.

"You're not going to hump all the furniture, are you?" she asked. He seemed to look at her reproachfully. "Don't be offended, it was just a question." She tried to absorb all the information she'd need to get him situated into her house with no problems, but her eyes were glazing over already. Something about paper books just put her to sleep. After about the third time she forced her eyes back open, she saw that her turian had crawled up onto the couch with her, and was playing with the naming book.

"Oh, isn't that cute … hey, where'd you find a pen?"

The turian jumped up at the change in tone, backing away from her and crouching by the bookcase.

Jane got up, leaving her book on the couch. "Let me see it." She held her hand out until he placed the pen in it, careful not to poke her with it. "And the book," she insisted, holding out her other hand. He gave it back to her, shaking slightly, and she couldn't help it; she had to reassure him.

"Easy, big guy, easy," she whispered, stroking his cowl. It was just at the right level with him sitting on the floor. He stayed tense for a moment, then wrapped his long arms around her legs, burying his face in her thigh. He certainly was friendly. She flipped through the book he'd been playing with, wondering how badly he'd scribbled on it. Instead, she found a circled name. She started giggling; it looked like he had done it on purpose.

"So, I guess your name is Garrus then, huh?"

Garrus looked up at her, unsure why she was laughing. He spread his mandibles at her again; it really looked like he was smiling when he did that.

"Oh, all right, then. Garrus it is. Sir Garrus Scalypants, esquire." Garrus chuffed a bit at that, and Shepard relented. "All right, just 'Garrus.' Come on, I'm tired. I'm going to bed."

Garrus seemed to know that word, as he scrambled to his feet and raced her into the bedroom. She was still grabbing the plush bed she'd bought for him and he was already gone. She dragged the heavy thing behind her, pausing in the doorway to turn on the light. Garrus was lying in the middle of her bed.

"I don't think so," she told him. She dragged the pet bed to the foot of hers and snapped her fingers, pointing at it. "Down."

Garrus looked at her sadly, mandibles drooping.

"No, sir. Down," she repeated, snapping her fingers again. He hung his head, crawling off of her comforter and settling on the clearly inadequate bed she'd spent so much on to get him.

Jane changed into her nightshirt, brushed her teeth, got ready for bed. The entire time she was aware of his intelligent, mournful eyes on her, asking why she'd make him sleep on the floor. He was still staring as she got into bed, snuggling deep under the covers. He rested his chin on the edge of the mattress.

And sighed, deeply.

Jane sat up and glared. "You are so manipulative, you know that?" she asked. "Fine, but just for tonight." She patted the comforter beside her and Garrus was instantly on the bed, bumping her arm with his forehead to show affection.

"Seriously, Garrus, leave me some bed, would you?"

He backed off just a little, leaving her enough room to sleep, but no more. Jane grumbled to herself, but she wasn't really upset. What was better than the unconditional love of a pet, an animal who looked as though he was dying of grief if he wasn't being petted that very second? She stroked his fringe lightly, smiling at the purring sound he made. She guessed she was one of those people now, the kind who let their animals sleep right up on the bed with them. At least she wasn't tucking him in; he could sleep on top of the damn blankets.

#

Jane woke to find her turian Garrus nuzzling her face. "Erg, jeez, knock that off," she fussed, pushing him away gently. She glanced at the clock, groaning. Looked like her new buddy was an early riser; she was up an hour earlier than she needed to be for work. Garrus nudged her shoulder, and she decided it was probably better she was up insanely early. She still had to walk him and feed him and all kinds of things before she could go, anyway.

"Okay, I'm up. Let me just pee, first." She stumbled toward the bathroom, dropping her panties to sit down.

Garrus was staring at her through the open door.

"Dude, occupied," she yelled, swinging for the door that was just past arm's length. His face disappeared briefly, but came back when he realized she couldn't reach. Jane got up to wash her hands, and Garrus snuck by her into the bathroom.

"Really not cool, Garrus, you're supposed to wait while –" She broke off mid-sentence when she turned the faucet off, but the water noise kept flowing.

He was using the toilet.

"Goddamn, you're smart," she whispered. She had heard someone claim you could train cats to use the toilet, and she knew turians were supposed to be smarter than them, but … she'd never heard of a turian going in the toilet unprompted.

He even flushed when he was done. He must really be as smart as a pyjak, at least.

"Good boy," she praised him, wanting to make sure he kept the habit. She'd have to walk him either way, but if he was using the bathroom properly, she wouldn't have to clean up any messes on their walks.

Jane threw on a pair of sweatpants; you shouldn't have to mind how you look when you're just taking the turian for a walk. Garrus was already grabbing his collar and leash when she got to the living room. He stood still while she fixed the collar around his neck, then nearly pulled her through the door as she opened it.

"Hang on, buddy," she said, looking to see what she had stepped on. Was she expecting a package? She opened the little yellow envelope to find the tags the deliveryman had promised yesterday.

"Hold still." She fiddled with the little metal rings, not wanting to take the collar off and put it back on. Garrus squirmed impatiently, ready to go already. "Now remember, you have to be pretty quiet. I already got your voice fixed, remember?" She pointed at him; he nuzzled her finger. _I hope that means he understands._ Then she started the walk, finding out all-too-soon that taking an untrained turian on a walk was more like being dragged behind a horse than anything else. After the fifth time she corrected him for pulling, she sighed to herself. She would have to get him enrolled in some kind of training class, but at least it looked like he'd use up all his energy before she had to leave him home while she went to work.

#

Ten hours later, Jane was feeling a little guilty as she leaned on the bar. Last week she'd agreed to drinks after work tonight, but that was before she'd adopted Garrus. Now, she tried to find a graceful way out early so she could make sure her turian was okay.

"Really, Charles, I do have to get going."

"It's early!" Charles put on a playful pout, batting his eyelashes. God, he had thick eyelashes for a guy. She really didn't want to end the date after two drinks.

"I've got liquor at my place," she offered, watching as his eyes went wide.

"Six months for a date, then straight to your place? Sure, let's go." He started to grab his jacket, while trying to finish his drink and pay the tab all at once. Jane smothered a snort. Well, he might be a little goofy, but he was a nice guy, wasn't he?

"Just gotta warn you, I have a brand-new turian at my place. Not aggressive, though."

"Sure, no problem. I love the little guys."

#

Garrus started keening before she'd even got the door open. Once she did, he immediately took all her personal space, nuzzling and touching lightly as though to assure himself she was really there.

"Affectionate little guy," Charles said, and Garrus stiffened.

"Easy, Garrus. This is my friend, okay?"

Garrus growled lightly over her shoulder, eyes locked on Charles's face. Jane poked him in the chest-plate.

"Hey! No, sir. Be nice."

Garrus immediately ducked his head, tags jingling.

"Aw, it's okay, buddy," Charles said, patting him on the shoulder. Garrus gave Shep a look that was clearly asking for permission to bite.

"Let's go in. Dinner time, big guy, you hungry?"

"_I_ could eat _something,"_ Charles joked, letting his hand graze her ass.

"Little presumptuous. I thought I only invited you here for drinks?" She winked when she said it, though, before heading inside.

She showed Charles where to find the drinks while she poured Garrus a bowl of his Shredded Meat, or whatever it was called. When she bent to set it on the floor, Charles whistled appreciatively.

"It's a sad day when the bouncers look so much nicer than the dancers," he sighed.

"Oh, please. You've seen what you look like. So, do I get a private dance? I took you home."

"Hey, hey, don't abuse the dancers. Besides, I got the impression you wanted to take it slower than that." He handed her a drink and Shep took a sip, surprised at the taste. She didn't even know she'd had mixers.

"Take it slow, then," she agreed.

#

An hour later, Jane was pinned under Charles on the couch.

_So much for slow._ Although, to be fair, he was doing a very slow and thorough job of getting her warmed up. He stopped abruptly, sitting up.

"What's wrong?" she asked. He pointed, and she noticed Garrus, sitting with his face approximately three inches from hers.

"He, uh. Keeps growling in my ear."

"Garrus, no! Bad." She glared, but Garrus wasn't shrinking back. "He must think he needs to be alert in case you try something."

"I _was_ trying," Charles muttered.

Jane grabbed his hand. "Come on, let's take it to the bedroom." A little fast, maybe, but she did like him, and he had been asking her out for a while. Plus, she was drunk; didn't seem like a bad idea.

They closed the door behind them, locking the turian out. Charles grabbed her, and they moved in the general direction of the bed, each trying to get undressed without breaking the kiss.

"Nice," he moaned once she'd discarded the bra. They fell onto the bed, all hands and heat and –

_Thump!_

"The hell?" Charles asked. He was kneeling over her, looking at the door.

"Don't worry about it." She turned away to shout. "Garrus! Knock it off!"

Charles grimaced. "Does he maybe have a crate or something?"

_Thump!_

"I'm sure he'll settle down in a minute, once he sees I'm not –"

Garrus burst through the door, then, snarling. Jane moved quickly, pushing Charles off and snatching Garrus's collar before he could attack.

"Garrus, no. Garrus, down!"

Charles didn't wait to see if she'd gain control of the animal, instead opting to grab as much of his clothing as he could and scramble away. Garrus calmed the moment Charles had left the bedroom.

"Garrus, stay!" Jane snapped, chasing Charles into the living room. "Hey, Charles, I'm sorry. Let me just put him in the bathroom –"

"Are you out of your mind? You need to get that thing trained. It's aggressive." He was fighting with a sneaker that turned out not to be his. He finally dropped it.

"He's not going to hurt you." Jane had her hands on her hips, irritated that she was standing here in panties and Charles was racing out the door.

"I'm not staying to find out. Forget this shit." He slammed the door as he left. Jane slowly turned, still topless, to look at Garrus.

He hid behind the bedroom door.

"Garrus, get out here." She waited while he slunk towards her, avoiding her gaze. "What do you think you're doing? You can't threaten guests."

His mandibles flicked; he appeared to have a different definition for "guests." She rubbed her face, trying to get rid of the sudden headache.

"You're taking a class. You can't be doing that when I have people over." She'd find a class on her lunch break tomorrow, she decided. For now, she was just going to bed.

"You just had to ruin it before I got any, didn't you?" She punched her pillow, flung the blankets around, kicking them until she was comfortable. "Stupid … untrained …." She was asleep fairly quickly, though, the night of drinking hitting her harder now that the fun part was over. She was already asleep when Garrus climbed up on the bed, claiming his spot next to her.

#

Jane shifted in her sleep, moaning.

"_Change your mind?" she asked._

"_Wasn't going to give up that easily." Charles grinned, then snagged her panties with his teeth, pulling them down while she laughed. He hovered over her a minute, just looking without making any contact yet. Then he slid lower, letting his hands graze her ribs and finally settle on her hips._

_Shep felt herself buck a little as his tongue reached her bud, probing gently._

"_God, yes. Oh, just like that …."_

_Charles started licking more energetically, growling into her warmth. Shep shivered at the vibrations. She was having a hard time keeping still for him. He gripped her tighter around the hips, keeping her immobile._

"_God, Charles … yes …." She was getting close already; her hips fighting to lift up and meet him, she needed more, please Charles, please … His talons dug in, still trying to –_

Wait. Jane opened her eyes to find Garrus bent over her, servicing her with that long blue tongue.

"Stop, no," she whimpered, but she'd woken too late. His talons dug deep as she writhed through her peak, trying and failing to stay quiet. His tongue never stopped until she stilled.

The moment she'd recovered, she was screaming at him, face flushed and eyes welling up. "What is wrong with you? Are you fucking sick?"

Garrus scrambled back, panic in his eyes. He fell off the far side of the bed and just cowered there. Jane grabbed the sheet and wrapped it around her.

_Just an animal. Not his fault._

_I'm fucking an animal! It'd better be someone's fault!_

Garrus whined slightly, and suddenly she wasn't angry anymore, realizing how terrified he must be. Shit, she was scaring him. She had a responsibility to be a good owner, no matter how disgusting he acted. Besides, she hadn't bought a crate, or read the training guide, or anything.

"Garrus," she said quietly.

He whined again. Shit. He probably expected she was going to start beating him, or throw him out on the street where she'd found him. She sat down on the bed, brushing away the shame-tears.

"Garrus, come here, please."

He practically crawled, moving only a few inches at a time, cringing the entire time. Eventually, he crouched at her feet.

"Garrus, I'm not going to hurt you. But you can't do that again."

He looked at her, seeming not to understand this time. Shepard sighed before deciding to call into work. They could find someone else to discourage the mostly-female patrons from getting too handsy with the dancers. She needed to take him to a class _now_.


	2. Mistress

Chapter Two

Mistress

Jane tugged gently on the leash; Garrus seemed hesitant to go into the pet store where the training class was being held. He looked at her pitifully, and she patted him on the shoulder.

"It's not a big deal, buddy. Just keep quiet, we'll figure out some tips, and then we'll go home, alright?"

Garrus didn't look reassured, but when she tugged again on the leash, he followed her into the building.

"This is an outrage!"

Garrus flinched back from the screamer and Shep threw a dirty look towards the old guy with the turian as she shuffled hers away from the scene.

"I prepaid for six weeks! Sparty is in this class!"

"Sir, I'm sorry, but we have no record of that." The asari clerk kept her calm, and a moment later she was out of view as Jane brought her trembling turian to the back of the store.

"It's okay, big guy, it's okay," she soothed. She found the circle of chairs that she guessed must be for the class. Several other people were already sitting down or finding seats, each with a leashed turian either at their feet or following close. Jane ended up sitting next to a _very_ tattooed human woman who clearly had no idea what a "shirt" was.

_I mean, I work around dancers and even they wear more than that,_ Jane thought, trying not to eye the suspenders that were barely keeping the legally-mandated bits covered.

"Oh, he's a big guy," Tattoos said. Her turian growled as she reached a hand out to Garrus and she yanked on the heavy chain hers was on. "What did I say? Don't you dare, Kuril, I mean it."

Garrus flinched back from the sharp tone, earning a glare from her.

"He's still just a little timid," Shep explained, keeping a hand on Garrus.

"Okay, people, we're starting." The speaker was a slight salarian in too-trendy clothes. His turian sat hunched over behind him, not making eye contact with anyone. "Now, first we're going to go over establishing dominance. These are very big animals –"

"Hey. Speaking of big animals," Tattoos whispered.

"Look at these teeth, people! He could bite me in half. If he wanted to. Except he knows I'm in charge. Cannot let them get away with anything."

"What about them?" Jane whispered back. The talkative woman was going to make her miss the important part, she was sure. Although, so far, it looked like a bunch of heavy chains and corporal discipline. This didn't seem right at all.

"You keep your turian's crotch intact?"

Jane froze, and sitting at her feet, Garrus tensed. "What?" Her voice was little more than a strangled whisper.

Her eyes remained locked straight ahead, and she saw the trainer yank hard on his turian's chain and choke collar, supposedly to show who was boss.

"See, Lilihierax. This is why you listen."

"I mean, if he's already fixed, they have … other talents, too. Just look at their tongues. Just don't use the peanut butter trick," Tattoos explained.

Garrus's eyes were flicking between Jane and the underdressed woman anxiously. He started to pull away, then glanced over to the trainer and decided to keep his leash slack. This class was no good for him, Jane decided.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she told Tattoos She signaled to Garrus they were leaving, but her arm was grabbed, hard, before she could go. Garrus was already on his feet and ready to run.

"Excuse me, Miss. Can never let them stand over you like that. If you're sitting, he needs to be sitting on the floor."

"Here, use this," Tattoos said. She punched a couple words into Jane's omni-tool before explaining. "It's a dextro-based edible, but it won't burn your junk. That way, he doesn't get sick after, and you don't have any side effects. It's expensive, but more than worth it."

"Miss! Need to make him sit down! Now."

"I need a cigarette," Jane practically shouted. Her face was aflame as she fled the training group. Since the trainer's demonstration, Garrus wasn't pulling on the leash, instead keeping so close she felt they might be sewn together.

Why on Earth had that disturbing woman picked her to talk to? Could she tell that Garrus had – No, that was crazy. There was no way she knew that. Jane's face was still burning as she deleted the woman's note from her omni-tool. No. It was sick and wrong. How it felt was completely irrelevant, because it was disgusting to even think about.

Garrus was shaking against the front of the building, waiting for her to move again. He kept making quiet whistling noises to himself, probably trying to self-comfort. It looked like the pervert and the sadistic trainer had both badly scared him; no wonder he hadn't wanted to go in.

"Hey, big guy. Want to hear a secret?"

Garrus raised his face to look at her, and the misery on his face was so painfully obvious that she promised they would never take an official class again. She'd find something on the extranet, and she'd train him without hitting him or using chains. _Or any kind of dextro peanut butter, gross._

"I don't really smoke, Garrus. I just said that so we could go home."

His mandibles spread wide in relief and he nuzzled her shoulder. She patted his fringe lightly. She didn't know why everyone else was training so aggressively; they were too smart for that. You just needed to find a way to explain to them, and they were obedient, just trying to make you happy. Jane jogged with Garrus back to her apartment, gently telling him "No pull," every time he started to drag her. Each time, he'd slow a bit, trying not to pull at the leash until he forgot again. Jane smiled, knowing that there was no reason to ever put him through an ordeal like that again.

#

Electric shock collar, guaranteed to work with no pain!

_Uh, no. That looks like something the batarians use on their sex-slaves, that they totally don't have on account of it being illegal._

Herbal remedy, just a few drops on your turian's tongue, and he's rumbling on your couch contentedly.

_Maybe there's an option to _not _have a high-as-balls turian just tripping on my couch._

Learn to communicate with your turian!

"Well, that might work," Jane muttered. She opened the page and started reading through it. Apparently, the clicks and whistles in unaltered domesticated turians were a holdover from a proto-language that the turians used to have. It was less complicated than dolphins' languages back on Earth, but you could train your turian to recognize and respond simply to most of your phrasings.

Jane turned to where Garrus was sitting on the couch, gnawing on some kind of meat bone thing she had gotten him. "What do you think, Garrus? Want to learn to talk with me a little?"

Garrus gave her another one of his loaded looks that she was starting to love. This one said clearly that he was talking; she just wasn't listening.

"Okay, okay. I'll buy it, then I'll know what my smart boy is saying all the time." She scratched under his chin. He really was talking all the time, wasn't he? He usually made a purring noise into his food, he was often clicking and whistling at her when he was content. Hmm. Shep hadn't really noticed before, but then he'd only been here what, two days? She gave her omni-tool permission to buy and start downloading the program. In just a few minutes, she'd know what all those chirps and soft growls meant. _And if you also buy the X-ray specs, you'll be able to see the ladies' underwear through their clothes._

She had to just laugh at herself. Of course it was going to be some kind of gimmick; maybe it would be able to read the tone, but she was certain she wasn't going to get conversation out of him. He was an animal, a pet. Still, it'd be fun to play with for a bit until the "translations" got repetitive and lost their charm.

#

Ten minutes later, she was programming the new download to her specifications. It asked approximately a thousand questions and she gave up setting it halfway through. Other than knowing what language she preferred, it really shouldn't need to know anything else, right?

"Okay, let's see if this thing does anything."

Garrus stared at her from his position in front of the couch, for once utterly silent.

"Well, come on, you have to say something for me to know if it works at all."

Garrus shifted, moving his jaw noiselessly.

"Don't be shy, buddy, this thing is supposed to tell me what you're saying all the time."

Finally, Garrus let loose a stream of chirps, grumbles, and whistles, which the translator dutifully morphed into Jane's native tongue. She had been fully expecting a pre-recorded list, consisting of things like "I'm hungry," "Let's go for a walk now," or "I love you, Mommy."

What she was completely unprepared for was Garrus's speech, clearly not just picked from a list of what people think their turians would say, pouring out of her translator and changing everything.

"What would you like me to say, Mistress?" he had said.

And now that she sat, immobile and unable to answer, he spoke again.

"Is it working, Mistress? Can you understand me now?"

#

Now it was Jane's mouth that moved without working. He can talk? He can actually fucking talk?

_Parlor trick. Just like parrots. He can't – I mean, he can't really be –_

"Garrus?" she whispered.

"Yes, Mistress?" His gaze was bright and inquisitive, and Shepard remembered how he had seemed to be listening the past few days, anticipating her. He even used the damn toilet, for Christ's sake. What if he was intelligent? Her stomach started to roll uncomfortably.

"Garrus, when you picked your name out of the book, you read it?"

"Yes, Mistress. I can't read much, but I know how to spell my name."

"You can spell?" Jane had a sudden urge to destroy the translation program, rip it out of the omni-tool. Or smash the omni-tool, if she couldn't stop the translator fast enough.

"Yes, Mistress. G-A-R—"

"Stop it."

Garrus fell silent, staring at the floor. Jane's hands settled on her head which had started thumping. She needed to think. What the fuck was she supposed to do now?

"Who taught you to read your name?"

"My mother. She was teaching me more, but then the breeder sold me."

Oh, god, breeders. Turians were an intelligent people, and they were being _bred._ And sold. And – Her stomach shifted again. She was going to toss her cookies. She needed to stop now, pretend this wasn't real, kill the translator program.

"Garrus, that woman at the pet store? And the thing you did last night?" Her face burned. She couldn't finish the question. Garrus seemed to understand anyway.

"She's like my old mistress," he explained quietly.

"And, last night? Why would you …?"

"I was trained to make Mistress happy. I want to make Mistress happy, I've never had such a good mistress before."

That was it for her stomach; Shepard bolted for the bathroom, barely reaching the toilet before she started throwing up what seemed to be every meal she'd ever eaten. When it finally slowed, she realized Garrus was sitting just outside the bathroom doorway, whispering a stream of "I'm sorry"s and "Please forgive me, Mistress." At the realization, she retched again but her stomach was empty.

"Stop it," she moaned, head still hanging over the toilet.

"I'm – yes, Mistress. But if you don't like that, I can do other things for you. I'm highly trained. My old mistress said I was her best pet –"

Retch. Nothing. Oh, God, make it stop. "Garrus, please stop. You're not a …" She forced herself to say it. "You're not my sex slave. Don't do those things to me, okay?"

"But, Mistress!"

Shepard risked moving her head and saw the terror on his face.

"Mistress, please don't sell me. I'll learn to do other things, whatever you want." He crawled forward, keeping his head lower than hers. To show submission? Probably, she guessed. He lay prostrate on the floor, whimpering into her legs and with his arms wrapped around her waist.

"Please, Mistress, don't sell me, don't get rid of me. I'll be good, I promise I can make you like me, please –"

"Garrus." She put her hand on his cowl. "Garrus, come on. I wouldn't just throw you out. Just … let's get up, okay?"

Garrus shot to his feet so he could help her up. She wanted to pull away, but he was quaking with the fear that she was going to get rid of him. That she didn't like him, so she would sell him to someone else.

_Someone like that tattooed bitch._ Jane shuddered. Then remembered that the degenerate already had at least one turian at her mercy.

"We have to do something," Jane said, collapsing onto the couch.

"I'll do whatever you want, Mistress," he answered immediately. He settled on the floor at her feet, gazing at her.

"Okay, first of all, you have to stop that. Stop calling me 'Mistress' and sit on the couch with me."

Garrus dropped his head, eyes flicking between her and the floor, not moving until she glared. Once she did, he scrambled to the couch and she felt like shit again. She was giving him orders and expecting him to comply; wasn't she acting like his mistress?

"Garrus –"

"I'm sorry, Mistress, I won't hesitate again. I'll be obedient. I promise."

The desperation in his voice was killing her.

"Look, no one is going to hurt you. And you can stay here. But I'm not your mistress, okay? You're your own person."

Garrus turned his head, looking down at the floor. He was chirping softly to himself, occasionally shaking his head and making the tags on his collar jingle. He clearly didn't understand.

Suddenly, Jane was angry. Someone had done this to him. To all of them. She lunged toward him, and he only closed his eyes. He didn't even flinch, made no move to stop her as she unbuckled his collar. A glance at his talons showed that he could easily kill her if he wanted. Even if she was hurting him, though, he would never defend himself. She threw the collar on the ground.

"Mistress," he whined.

"No. You are not a pet. Do you get me?"

"I … I have to go back to sleeping outside and eating out of garbage cans?"

"No, just …." She dropped her face into her hands. It wasn't fair. This was too hard. Why her? "Just, do what you want. You can live here. We'll figure something out. We have to make people realize your people aren't dumb animals." One hand moved from covering her face to rub at her temple.

"I can do what I want?" he asked.

"Yes."

Immediately, he picked up the collar and started putting it around his neck.

"Except that," she snapped. "Put it down. Put it on the table. You're not wearing that. You're not a pet."

"When we go outside, someone will take me away if I don't wear my tags, Mistress."

Jane glowered. "Then you can wear it outside, as a costume only."

Garrus relinquished the collar, although his mandibles were drooping. "Mistress, do you have a headache?"

Shepard was rubbing both temples by now and she was starting to feel nauseous again. "Yes, Garrus. I have a headache and I probably need to eat something soon."

"And I can do what I want?"

"Yes, Garrus. Just as long as it's not acting like a pet, you can do what you want." The couch bounced as he got up quickly. A moment later he was back with a box of crackers for her.

"Thank you." She dug into them gratefully. He waited until she was distracted with the food, then slid in behind her on the couch. He started rubbing gentle circles on her neck.

"Garrus, wait –"

"You said do what I want. I want to help your headache."

Jane gave up, relaxing into the touch. It was just a massage. It's not like she was making him do it. Her headache started to clear up as he worked the tension out of her neck and shoulders.

"That feels good," she moaned.

"Headache better?"

Jane smiled wryly. He kept pausing when he was speaking; he was catching himself each time he tried to call her "Mistress," she guessed.

"Much better," she agreed.

He pulled her back until she was resting against his chest and kept rubbing her arms.

Shepard sighed. It was so nice, to just be petted when you were sick. His hands rested on her waist as he started nuzzling her neck. Shepard stiffened, realizing that something _else_ had stiffened and was pressed against her lower back.

"Garrus, stop." She tried to say it firmly.

"You said to do whatever I want," he returned before licking her behind the ear.

She shivered. "Not … not this," she managed. "I get a say in what I do, and I say 'no.'"

Garrus's hands stopped moving. "Mistress doesn't … Mistress doesn't want me at all?" he asked.

_Yes._ "No. This isn't right like this. I think I need to go to sleep now." She got up, and he didn't try to keep her.

"Mistress will make me sleep on the floor?" His fingertips picked at each other anxiously.

Jane sighed. "No, Garrus, I won't make you sleep on the floor."

Garrus's mandibles spread wide. "I sleep on the bed?"

"Fine. Just … no more surprises like last night. Got it? I've said 'no' and I know you understand me, so you can't do that."

Garrus nodded enthusiastically. "Mistress said no, I understand." He rushed by her to claim his spot on the bed before she changed her mind. "I will please Mistress when she's ready," he added. Shepard stared at the translator, convinced he hadn't really said that. She really needed to explain that better. If he still thought that ….

_He's not going to get it all at once. We'll work on it more tomorrow._ Yes, tomorrow. Somehow, she had to undo Garrus's programming and figure out how to get the turian species recognized as a sapient race, tomorrow.


	3. Jingle-Jingle

Chapter Three

Jingle-Jingle

"Fuck!"

Garrus scrambled off the couch as Jane stormed through the door, throwing her jacket down.

"I'm sorry, Mistress, I didn't –"

"Garrus, I'm not yelling at you, you're fine."

"What's wrong?" Garrus had shifted closer to her, his hand hovering but not quite petting her. Well, at least he'd learned not to touch her constantly over the last couple of weeks.

"How are your letters?" she asked instead of answering his question.

Garrus picked up his workbook to show her. "I can read all of them, but I can't write all of them yet."

"Good, good." She flipped through the book, examining his penmanship. He'd been working on it since she discovered he was sapient and he was getting quite good. And he was reading better, although since he was still speaking his own language, there were some funny translation issues sometimes. Still, it was a step up from being completely illiterate. And he'd started to learn to assert himself and that he didn't have to please her at every moment. He had even stopped calling her "Mistress," most of the time. Everything was starting to come together.

"Tell me what's wrong?" he asked.

Except her project.

"I failed," she muttered. "Can't get an appointment with the Council, and every university I managed to contact about turian intelligence laughed me off the communicator. No one will believe me." She sank down on the couch.

Garrus sat down next to her and put his arm around her. "It's okay. It's not that important."

Jane flung his arm off her and jumped up to attack the liquor cabinet. "It is, though. Every single turian is just – how can you not –"

"I'm happy where I am." Garrus shrugged, a gesture he'd picked up from her recently.

Jane considered the whiskey glass a moment, the effort involved in pouring a glass, drinking, then pouring again, before deciding to just drink out of the bottle. "You drink? I've got some dextro stuff here. I keep it for Tali."

"Tali is your quarian friend?"

"Yes. Daughter of Admiral – Oh, shit." Her eyes went wide as she realized.

"Mistr – Miss Shepard? Did you think of something?"

"Tali!" Jane was already shouting into her omni-tool.

"_Keelah, what? Are you ready to tell me about your secret project yet?"_

"Yes. I mean, no. Look, I need to speak to the Council. I can't get in. Can your dad?"

"Oh, Jane … I don't know. I mean, we're barely allowed an embassy, since the Morning War … if we start bringing up any issue someone –"

"Tali, this is important. I have never asked for anything like this before." Shepard swallowed hard. Normally, she didn't even ask for things, she just told people what was going on. The last couple of weeks, she'd been begging everyone to just _listen_ to her about this. Her eyes were unfocused; she didn't even see how tense Garrus was as he stood in front of her. There was a long moment as Tali considered.

"_All right. If it's important, I'll manage something."_

"Thank you, Tali."

"Mistr – Um, Shepard? Will you be able to talk to the Council, then?"

"Yes. We're going to go to the Council, and after I explain my case, you'll talk to them. You're going to be free." She threw her arms around him. She was going to be able to fix this.

When she drew back, Garrus wasn't quite ready to let her go. He stroked her hair gently, one hand still on her waist.

_Oh, shit. He doesn't still think he has to make his Mistress feel good, does he?_

"After … after I'm free, Mi –" He paused, swallowing hard before continuing. "Jane. I do want you. You said I can't know what I want, but I do."

Jane smiled. Apparently, she'd finally managed to explain to him the _concept_ of not making these kinds of decisions as a brainwashed slave, even if he still didn't agree.

"You know what? Once you're free, if you wanna ask me out, I won't stop you."

Garrus's mandibles spread wide in a grin. His forehead came to rest gently on hers.

A moment later, Jane's omni-tool beeped; she played the message Tali had left.

"_Tomorrow. Ten in the morning. It had better be worth it."_

#

"Remember, don't say anything until I tell you to. If you start talking early, they'll just be distracted by the unaltered turian. Got it?" In the short walk to the Council chambers, she had gone over the plan, making certain he understood fully.

"You've explained it three times," Garrus grumbled, rolling his eyes.

Jane smiled to herself. He was showing less of his brainwashed attitude since the meeting had been arranged. "There's Tali. Keep it down," she muttered.

Tali was clearly agitated, fidgeting as she approached. "I really do not know about this. Are you sure you cannot tell me what is going on?"

Jane flopped down onto a bench. "You'll find out in a minute. Is your father –" she stopped asking as a group of suited quarians walked by. Tali yanked her to her feet to follow them. Garrus was right behind her, but Jane motioned for him to stay a few steps back; they weren't going to be happy about a turian in the council room anyway, so they might as well keep him as out-of-sight as possible.

"What is this meeting about?" Tevos asked before the quarian-and-Jane party could get settled. The salarian councilor on her left looked limpidly at the group before them, and the batarian councilor on her right glared at Garrus.

Rael'Zorah looked to his daughter Tali, and Tali in turn looked to Jane.

Jane stepped forward. Shit, she wasn't a public speaker. "Council … members. Um. I have an important … Look, the thing is …." She felt her face flushing, realizing that this was going terribly. Tali groaned; this was going to look bad for the quarians. Why had they let her call this meeting?

The batarian councilor Boer snarled. "If you have something to say, human, spit it out. We've very busy."

The Councilors turned their glares on Rael'Zorah, who began apologizing for the waste of time. Tali took Jane's arm and tried to pull her away before she could make it any worse.

"Head Councilor Tevos!" Jane shouted. The room froze for a moment. Jane licked her lips. _Now or never._ "Councilors, turians have had a great injustice perpetrated against them. They are an intelligent race that has been unjustly enslaved for ages."

"Oh, Keelah, no," Tali moaned; Jane had lost her mind.

Jane Shepard was ignoring Tali entirely, too preoccupied with the tableau in front of her.

When she had spoken, Tevos's eyes first went wide, then flashed to the batarian councilor. Now, Tevos had stepped back half a step, waiting for Boer to speak. Boer, from the Batarian Hegemony. Which had agreed to stop its practice of slavery when it joined the Council races, but kept a _lot_ of turian pets.

_You've got to be fucking kidding me. That can't be what this is._

Boer spoke quietly to Tevos, who nodded before addressing Shepard.

"We do not have time to listen to such ridiculous conspiracy theories. Rael'Zorah, please stay. We wish to discuss appropriate uses of the Council's time. The rest of you are dismissed."

"Get her out of here," Rael hissed to Tali.

Jane tried to struggle, but couldn't quite manage it; her arms were too heavy to lift and it was just easier to move where Tali propelled her.

Boer was not surprised at what she'd tried to tell them. The salarian councilor wasn't looking at any of them, and Tevos looked embarrassed.

They all knew. They all fucking knew and they were keeping turians as slaves on purpose.

"Keelah, I cannot believe you did this to me! I thought we were friends, why would you do this to me, to my people?" Tali started yelling the moment they were out of the council's earshot.

"Tali, it's true, I swear. Garrus –"

"I do not care! You have gone insane." Tali was pacing, looking slightly less-than-sane herself. "You think your turian is a person. Do you even realize how crazy that sounds? Go home, Jane. Or see a therapist. If we lose the embassy over this –"

"Stop," Jane said quietly. Garrus had opened his mouth to speak; of course, Tali thought Shep was speaking to her.

"Oh, fine. Do me a favor, and don't talk to me anymore."

Garrus put a hand on Jane's arm as Tali walked away. He understood her warning about him speaking, after the briefest meeting in the history of ever. His eyes were eloquent, though.

"Let's go," she said dully. "I have to get to work, anyway."

#

Jane Shepard glared at the krogan who was harassing the dancers.

"Look, I'm not in the mood for this. You were already warned to keep your hands to yourself, since you can't manage that, get the fuck out." She was all out of nice. She had an enslaved turian at home, and no way to get him recognized as a person.

"He was asking for it," the krogan growled. He wasn't budging from his seat by the stage. The drell who had been dancing was already off the stage, having some kind of breakdown in the dressing room.

_God save me from aggressive, gay krogan._

"I'm not gonna tell you again," Jane said, putting a hand on his shoulder to guide him towards the door.

That was a mistake.

The krogan glared at her, biotic blue glow appearing around him. She had a single moment to remember that krogan battlemasters were serious business before he slammed her into the stage. The pain as her back hit the edge of the stage was incredible, but it was quickly overshadowed by the pain in her head as he slammed her skull into the stage again and again. Jane barely saw the two asari bouncers coming over to save her before she blacked out. She should have grabbed them right away. You do _not_ mess with a battlemaster if you're not biotic.

As the asari pulled the krogan off her, Jane realized she couldn't feel her body anymore; she had a vague sensation of drifting floorward. She hoped he hadn't broken anything irreparable.

_Oh, shit, who's going to take care of Garrus while I'm out?_

#

Jane tried to bolt upright in bed the moment she awoke and immediately regretted it. Well, she had some major bruising, but if anything had been broken, it was fixed by now.

"Keelah, you're awake."

"Tali?"

Her friend was curled up in the hospital chair, suit rumpled; she'd clearly been keeping vigil for a while.

"I'm sorry. I should not have reacted that way. I think you need to speak to someone, Jane, you have not been acting yourself."

"Fine, yeah. I'll do that. Garrus –"

"He is … safe. Just rest, all right? You cannot get up yet." Tali frantically pressed the nurse button. "You should not even be awake yet. Keelah, you need sleep."

Shep's eyes narrowed. "What aren't you telling me?"

"Please, Jane. Can it not wait until you are better? I told you, he is … safe."

"Why do you keep hesitating before the word 'safe?'" Jane's voice was low and dangerous; she watched as Tali wrung her hands.

Finally, Tali broke. "It was not my fault! I swear, I was just trying to watch him while you were gone, I promise!"

"What happened to him?" Jane asked, stomach sinking. _If anything's happened …._

"He … After I got your animal, my father came over. When it started making noise, my father said he had to take it to get its voice fixed."

Jane blanched. "He must have told you he was intelligent."

"Jane …." Tali hesitated before placing a hand gently on Shepard's shoulder. "Jane, sweetie, he is a turian. They cannot talk."

_Fuck, of course. The translator is on my omni-tool._

"Where is he?" Jane sat up with difficulty, struggling to get out of bed. When Jane didn't get an answer right away, she turned her cold gaze on her friend. "I am going to go get him now. Help me or we're done."

"I will take you to the shelter," Tali said.

#

Garrus's eyes were distant when Jane picked him up from the shelter. She paid the fine and told Tali she'd meet her later, wanting to speak to Garrus alone as quickly as possible.

"Garrus, I didn't know. I was in the hospital. Garrus, I promise you, we can fix this." She knew her tone marked it as a lie. No one was going to illegally un-mute a turian on the Citadel. Even if she could find a doctor to do it, it would cost Hell's own money.

"Garrus, you can still write. We'll still find a way. It'll be okay."

Garrus gave no indication that he could understand her. He stuck close during the walk home, behaving on leash as though he were nothing but a well-trained pet.

"Garrus, please," Jane pleaded. She took his leash and collar off the second they were in the door. She grabbed a notepad and thrust it into his hands. "Please, talk to me. Something. Anything."

Garrus looked at the notepad, then raised his eyes to hers. The grief in them was palpable. He let the notepad drop.

"Garrus, dammit, I know you can read and write." She reached down to grab the notepad. She could still fix this. She just needed him to work with her. "I taught you. We can figure something out –" She stopped cold. While she was reaching for the notepad, Garrus had picked up his collar from its hook by the door.

"Don't you dare. You can't go backwards. Don't you do it."

Garrus looked at her steadily as he buckled the collar around his neck. His intent was clear.

"You are not a pet, dammit."

Garrus started to walk away. Jane grabbed his arm, trying to think of the right words. Something had to convince him that he didn't have to be a pet just because he could no longer speak.

Instead, he nuzzled her hand, stopping her speech. She didn't know what to do after that. She went through the motions of an evening at home, fixing his dinner and her own, sitting down in front of the vidscreen. After a while, Garrus moved up onto the couch with her. She had a brief moment of hope, but he didn't put an arm around her like he had been doing, instead only nuzzling close like an animal.

_Goddamit. This isn't right._ Garrus's tags jingled as he continued to nuzzle her. Jane tried to figure out a way.

She'd let him think it over for a while. This was a huge setback, but in a few days, he'd realize that it wasn't an insurmountable obstacle. Even if the Council clearly knew that turians were sapient. Even if –

By now, Garrus had worked his way up to nuzzling at her neck, and his hand was sliding up the inside of her thigh.

"Wait –"

Garrus pushed her down against the couch lightly. Jane tried to think of a reason to resist. She knew he knew he wasn't supposed to be a pet. But he was still brainwashed. And he was still going to be legally a pet. She couldn't –

Garrus kissed her deeply, one hand working its way inside her pants. She started to forget what she wasn't supposed to be doing.

It wasn't that bad, right? He was sapient. He wanted her. He could make the decision; he wasn't _that_ brainwashed. She wasn't forcing him.

He felt her relax, no longer opposed and he worked her pants all the way off. He was panting harshly now. He needed this, so how could she say no when she didn't even want to refuse him?

His tags jingled above her face as he moved within her and she felt a twinge of guilt. He was still brainwashed, wasn't he?

_Jingle-jingle. Jingle-jingle._

She started to say something, but his thumb found her clit and the combination of lazy circles there with his steady thrusting left her unable to speak. She gasped, her body straining upward to meet him.

She moaned, letting her arms go around his neck. She started playing idly with the sensitive spot underneath his fringe, and he buried his face in her shoulder, his pace getting more frantic.

_Well, it's better than him having to live on the street as a feral, isn't it?_

_Isn't it?_

Jingle-jingle.

Jingle.


End file.
